Article of furniture having extensible upholstered surfaces



Oct. 31, 1933. T SALTER 1,933,342

ARTICLE OF FURNITURE HAVING EXTENSIBLE UPHOLSTERED SURFACES Filed Dec.28, 1932 5 Sheets-Sheet l Tn m as saH'er INVENTOR QWMK Kb: BTTORNEY Oct.31, 1933. T. SALTER 1,933,342

ARTICLE OF FURNITURE HAVING EXTENSIBLE UPHOLSTERED SURFACES Filed Dec,28, 1932 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Oct. 31, 1933. 'r. SALTER 9 ARTICLE 05'FURNITURE HAVING EXTENSIBLE UPHOLSTERED SURFACES Filed Dec. 28, 1952SSheets-Sheec 3 THOMCLE, SQH'EY //VVEN7'OR Patented Oct. 31,: 1933UNITED STATES ARTICLE OF FURNITURE HAVING EXTENSI- BLE UPHOLSTEREDSURFACES Thomas Salter, High Wycombe, England,

assignor to Nesta Limited, London, England Application December 28,1932, Serial No. 649,157, and in Great BritainDecember 1, 1931 7'Claims. (01. 352) This invention concerns a new or improved article offurniture having an extensible. upholstered. surface and particularlyconcerns an extensible'mattress, especially a spring mattress,

.5 and the primary object of this invention is toprovide amattress orspring upholstered seating or like surface which can be extendedlaterally, and a further object of the invention is to provide alaterally extensible mattress or seating surface of this kind which maybe used as part of a laterally extensible bed or in a laterallyextensible divan. I In order that the invention may be clearlyunderstood and readily carried into practice, I' have appended heretothree sheets of drawings,-

or upholstered surface being in its folded position,

Figure 2 shows the same bed with the mattress or upholstered surface inthe laterally extended position,

Figure 3 shows the same. bed in the position illustrated in Figure 2,but with a mattress section removed,

Figure 4 illustrates a detail of a modified mattress or upholsteredsurface with respect to the location of the legs, and is drawn to anenlarged scale,

Figure 5 is an end elevation, drawn to an enlarged scale, of themattress or upholstered surface with a section removed,

Figure 6 shows this invention appliedto a divan, part of the divan beingshown broken away more clearly to illustrate the construction,

Figure 7 is'an end elevation of a modified mattress according to thisinvention,

Figure 8 is .an end elevation of the. mattress shown in Figure 7 but theparts are here shown in extended position, and

Figure 9 is a perspective view of a modification. I

Referring to. Figures 1 to 5 of the drawings, 1 is a bedstead havingends 2 and 3, and on the bedstead is mounted a laterally extensible mattress or upholstered surface comprising a base 4 conveniently formed bya sheet of plywood 50 which is of a length and breadth correspondingsubstantially to the usual length'and breadth of a single bed. a i a 1To one longitudinal edge of the base 4 is hinged at one of. itslongitudinal edges a wing 55 5 equal in length to the base 4, but onlyhalf the width of the latter, this wing being connected to the base 4 byhingesv 6. g I

The wing 5 may occupy aposition such as is shown in Figure. 1 where thewing lies ontop of the base 4, or the wing may be turned-- into anextended position, such as is illustrated in i Figures 2 and 3.

On that side of the wing 5 which-is uppermost when the wing is in thefolded position shown in Figure 1, is mounted a spring mattress section7,. which is of the same length and breadth as the wing. A similarmattress section 8 is mounted on the base 4 with its outer longitudinaledge coincident with that longitudi-- nal edge of the base opposite tothe edge at which the wing 5 is hinged, and when the wing 5 is in thefolded position the mattress sections 7 and 8 lie side by side and arecomplementary andtogether extend fully across the base 4.

'When the wing 5 is turned into the extended position, the mattresssection 7 mounted thereon is inverted and the then'upper surface of thewing 5 is flush with the upper surface of the base 4, and in this waythe rebate or recess 9 normally. occupied by the mattress section 7 isextended; as will be clearly-seen from Fig. 3. r

A further spring mattress section or spring recessQ formed by theunfolding of the wing is scribed above, and the extended rabbet, step,or

filled by moving the mattress section or overlay I 10 thereinto, as isclearly shown in Figure 2, the upper surface of the mattress section orove lay 10 then being substantially flush with the upper surface of themattress section 8, and

these two mattress sections 8 and l0'1ying side by side and the combinedmattress thus formed extendingthe full width of the side by side base 4and wing 5. V

To the wing 5 at a short distance from each end thereof and at asuitable distance from the hinged'edge of the wing, is attached by ahinge 11 a foldable leg 12 which can fold into a. recess 13-;provided inthe spring mattress section 7, The hinge 11 is mounted on the inner sideof the leg 12 so that when the leg isextended its upper end abuts a partof the wing 5 which forms a stop limiting the 'movement of the leg inthe outward direction.

In order automatically to move the leg into the extended position as thewing 5 is turned into the position shown in Figure 3, each leg isconnected by a flexible member orlink 14, which may be formed of fabricor other suitable mate rial, to the base l, and this flexible member isprevented from lateral displacement in an outward direction by furtherflexible restraining members 15 secured. to the members 14 and the Wing5.

In order that the flexible members or links 14 shall begin to extend thelegs early in the movement of the wing 5, each flexible member 14 iselastic to a limited degree and incorporates an elastic section 16(Figure 5), which takes up part of the length of the flexible member 14when the wing 5 is in the folded position, but does not hinder the wingbeing extended although it tends to resist the'movement of the leg 12with the latter and 'so causes the leg to beginto move into the extendedposition.

When the wing 5 is in'the extended position the flexible member 14 isfully extended so that the leg 12 is positively held in its fullyextended position. f

In order tosimplify the moving of the wing 5, it is provided, on thatside which'is uppermost when the wing is extended, with a pair' of loops17. a

The mattress section 8 is conveniently connected to the base at itsinner longitudinal lower edge by a fabric or other suitable hinge 18,but the outer longitudinal edge of the mattress section is free and canbe raised so that bed-clothes can be tucked thereunder.

Figures 7 and 8 show a modification in which the mattress section 8,instead of being hinged to the base 5 at 18, is hinged at 27 to themattress section 10 by a fabric hinge. Normally when the mattress isunextended the mattress sections 8 and 10 are folded andsuperimposed asshown in Figure 7, but when the mattress is extended these mattresssections lie side by side on the same level as shown in Figure 8, the

section 10 having been moved laterally and the section 8 having beeninverted.

In Figure 6 the invention is illustrated as applied to an extensibledivan, and in this case the base 4 consists of a rectangular wooden ormetal frame 19 provided with legs 20 and having a boarded upper surface21, the wing 5 being hinged to this base in a similar manner to thatpreviously described. The arrangement of the mattress sections and otherparts of the divan conveniently are very similar to those previouslydescribed with reference to the bed illustrated in Figures 1 to 5.

Figure 9 shows a foldable extensible type of leg which may be used inplace of the legs 12 or 20; This extensible leg is made in two parts 217 and 22, the part21 being of rectangular hollow or tubular form, andthe part 22 being endwise slidable therein. r The outer part 21 of theleg is provided with a slot through which passes a bolt 24 also passingthrough the inner part 22 and having a head at one end and a wing nut 25at the other, and under which wing nut a washer 26 is provided.

' By making the leg in this way its height or length is adjustabletosuit requirements within given limits, and a mattress having its wing5 fitted with legs ofthis kind can be sold for appli-- cation tobedsteads of slightly differing heights which is of course advantageous.

What I claim is:-

1. An article of furniture comprising a supporting base, a wing less inwidth than the base and hinged to aside edge thereof, a; plurality ofrelatively narrow upholstered sections each less in width than the saidbase and normally lying side by side to form a continuousupholsteredsurface one of said sections being carried by said wing member, afurther upholstered section of' a width equal to the combined width ofsaid relatively narrow sections, and the latter sec- 2. An article offurniture comprising a base,

an upholstered section on the upper surface of said base and less inwidth than the latter, a

wing invertibly attached to said base and adapted to be superimposed onthe latter or to form a lateralextensionthereof, an upholstered sectionon that side of said wing'which is uppermost when the wing issuperimposed on the base and adapted, when the wing is in the latterposition, to lie side by side with the first-named upholstered section,and a still further upholstered section normally adapted to besuperimposed on said other upholstered sections and equal in width tothe combined Width of these sections but adapted to be moved Whenthesaid wing is inverted, to occupy the extended recess so formed andadapted to lie with its upper surface flush with the upper surface ofthe adjacent section and to serve as a lateral extension of theupholstered section on the said base.

3. An article of furniture comprising a supporting base, an extensionwing hinged to one longitudinal edge of saidv base and adapted to beeithers'uperimposed on said base or to act as a lateral extensionthereof, foldable legs on'said wing adapted to" support the latter whenit is extended, an upholstered section on and along one side of saidbase and less in width than the latter, a further upholstered sectionmounted on that surface of the wing which is uppermost when the wing issuperposed on the base, said further upholstered section beingcomplementary to the upholstered section onthe base and these twosections when side by side forming an upholstered section equal in widthto said base,

and anadditional upholstered section adapted to fill the recess formedby extending said wing,

ioo

and to lie in such recess and side by side with the upholstered sectionon the said baseto form a laterally extended upholstered surface.

4'. An article of furniturecomprising a supporting base, an extensionwing hinged toone longitudinal edge of said base and adapted to beeither superimposed on said base or to act as a lateral extensionthereof, foldable legs on said wing adapted to support the latter whenit is extended, means adapted automatically to extend said legs when thewing is moved into its ex- 1 tended position, an upholstered section onand along one side of said base and less in'width' than the latter, afurther upholstered section mounted on that'surfaceof the wing which isuppermost when the wing issuperposed on the 1 base, said furtherupholstered section being complementary to the section on the base andthese two sections when side by side forming an upholstered sectionequal in width to said base, and a spring interior overlay adapted tofill the recess formed by extending said Wing and to lie in such recessand side by side with the upholstered section on the said base to form alaterally extended upholstered surface.

5. An article of furniture comprising a supporting base, an extensionwing hinged to one longitudinal edge of said base and adapted to beeither superimposed on said base or toact as a lateral extensionthereof, foldable legs on said wing adapted to support the latter whenit is extended, flexible elastic links connected to said legs and tosaid base and adapted to cause said legs automatically to unfold whenthe said wing is extended, an upholstered section on and along one sideof said base and less in width than the latter, a further upholsteredsection mounted on that surface of the wing which is uppermost when thewing is superposed on the base, said further upholstered section beingcomplementary to the upholstered section on thebase and these twosections when side by side forming an upholstered section equal in widthto said base,

and a spring interior overlay adapted to fill the recess formed byextending said wing and to lie in such recess and side by side with theupholstered section on the said base to form a laterally extendedupholstered surface.

6. An article of furniture comprising a supporting base, an extensionWing hinged to one longitudinal edge of said base and adapted to beeither superimposed on said base or to 'act as a lateral extensionthereof, telescopic and foldable legs on said wing adapted to supportthe latter when it is extended, means adapted automatically to extendsaid legs when the, wing is moved into its extended position,antupholstered sectionon and along one side of said base and less inwidth than the latter, a further upholstered section mounted on thatsurface of'the wing which is uppermost when the wing is superposed onthe base, said further upholstered section being complementary to theupholstered section on the base and these two sections when side by sideforming an upholstered section equal in Width to said base and a springinterior overlay adapted to fill the recess formed by extending saidwing and to lie in such recess and side by .side with the upholsteredsection on the said base to form a laterally extended upholsteredsurface.

'7. A laterally extensible mattress comprising a spring interior mainsection provided with a longitudinal recess extending inwardly from onelongitudinal edge thereof, a subsidiary and complementary springinterior section adapted to fill said recess and hinged at its outerlongitudi nal edge to said main section, the subsidiary sec- 199 tionbeing movable into'aninverted position in which its then uppermostsurface is flush with the bottom of said recess and the said subsidiarysection forms a lateral extension of the said main section and the saidrecess is enlarged, a further spring interior section adapted to fillsaid enlarged recess, legs foldably associated with said subsidiarysection, and means adapted automatically to extend said legs when thesubsidiary section is moved into an extended position.

THOMAS SALTER.

